The Isle of Memories
by WildFlower084
Summary: Sinbad and the crew rescue two children after their village burned down. Who are they and what is exactly the little girl they have rescued? The story is actually so much better than my summary.
1. Rowan and Malika

**A/N: This is actually a story I wrote two or three years ago that I found on my computer so I decided to post it. It feels weird to do it, especially since the show ended like... what? Five years ago or something (maybe more, my memory's bad!). Anyway hope you like it and if some of you actually read this, please review and let me know what you think.**

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It was another fine day. The sun was shinning brighlty in a nearly-cloudless sky and seagulls were flying overhead, chirping somewhat joyfully. Sinbad came out from below deck, looked up at the sky and sighed in satisfaction.

"Another fine day!" he said, cheerfully.

A hawk came flying over his head.

"'Morning Dermott!"

Dermott squawked back.

Sinbad walked up to the tiller and told the man holding it that he could now go to bed. The man thanked him and handed the wooded tiller to his captain before walking off below deck. From his location at the tip of the boat, Sinbad looked around at his crew. Doubar and Bryn were sitting at the other end of the ship, talking, Firouz and Rongar were playing this new game the scientist had made up. What was it called? Football? Runball? He couldn't quite remember. All he knew was that it looked fun and that his friends had been playing for two days straight. Dermott was being his usual self, flying ahead to make sure no danger was coming their way. Of course, there was still one person missing. Sinbad still wished at times that she could be here with him but he had goteten over the pain of her death and had let go of her. It didn't mean his feelings for her were gone. He hardly doubted they would ever leave. He still cared about her but he had learned that grieving does not go on forever. It can be stopped.

Sinbad was thinking about her when Dermott came squawking back. Something was wrong, the captain could sense it. He swore he had detected a hint of urgency on the hawk's cry.

"What's the matter, Dermott?" he asked the bird.

Dermott squawked once again which made Bryn come running to her hawk. Dermott flew on her wrist and squawked again.

"What is it, Derm?" she asked him with the sweet little voice she used with him.

Dermott continued his furious squawking.

"Something must be wrong," saidFirouz who had joined them, followed by Doubar and Rongar.

"Firouz, get your magnoscope. Dermott, when Firouz comes back, show him where the danger awaits."

Seconds later, Firouz came back on deck and Dermott flew away. Firouz followed him through his magnoscope until the hawk disappeared.

"Sinbad, I can't see him anymore. We'll have to follow him."

Sinbad immediately turned the tiller so the ship would face Dermott's direction.

They had been sailing for about two hours when Firouz yelled:

"I see him, Sinbad, I see him! And..."

"What, what, Firouz?"

"I see a land. It looks like an island. Smoke is coming up from it, I think there might be a fire."

"How far from this island are we?"

"I'd say maybe an hour, two hours."

"That's still too much. Hey, Bryn!"

Bryn looked up from her book.

"Go look in your room to see if there's any spell you might be able to do to make the wind blow us faster!" Sinbad ordered.

"Aye aye Captain!"

And Bryn went down to her cabin.

Most of Maeve's books had been put in Bryn's cabin which was Rongar's old cabin. On Sinbad's orders, Rongar had moved to Maeve's old cabin while Bryn took Rongar's old one. Although he was very fond of Bryn, he just didn't want her to sleep in Maeve's old room and he was sure Maeve, should she be watching over him, would be happy about it.

Bryn went through a couple of magic books. They were too advanced for her. She would never be able to perform any of them yet she still liked to go through the books. Secretly, she envied Maeve. She never met the girl but by the looks of her books, she must have been an amazing sorceress and she wished she could be like her. Moreover, Sinbad had been really close to Maeve and she wished she could have the same relationship with the captain. She knew it was impossible because Sinbad had his heart dead-set on Maeve even though she was probably... well... dead.

"Ah-ha!" she said when she had found what she was looking for. "Ha gaïa il ty lem!"

She felt the ship tipping from side to side.

"Too much wind, Bryn!" she heard her captain yell from above.

"Ha gaïa il ty lem!" she said, with less intonation in her voice.

She waited a couple of seconds.

"Perfect!" she heard from above her head.

Bryn smiled, closed the book and went back up outside. It was now a little bit windier and the ship was sailing a little faster. Sinbad seemed happy with her.

Forty-five minutes later, they were setting foot on the island. The crew looked around. The fire had already destroyed a great part of the island.

"We have to stop this thing before it kills anyone," Sinbad said. "Bryn, do you think you could stop it?"

"How?" she asked.

"I don't know, let's see... water, maybe!" he replied.

"Like a spell? But I left my books on the ship."

"Dammit! OK, um... first let's find out if there are any villages on this island."

"If there is, what do we do?"

"We'll take everybody out of their village and try to bring them back here somehow. OK, let's go, let's hurry."

The crew started running through the ashes and what was left of the forest that had once stood there. After a while, they reached a calcinated village.

"Oh my god!" Bryn said as she looked around.

"Let's just hope that nobody has died during this fire. Come on, let's go on!"

They started running once more. As they ran deeper in the island, the smoke thickened.

"We must be near the fire, the smoke is getting thicker and thicker by the second."

"HELP!"

The crew stopped in their path.

"Did anyone just hear something?" Doubar asked.

"Sounded like someone was crying out for help," Sinbad said.

"Let's wait to see if they'll yell again."

"HELP!"

"It's coming from over there."

Firouz pointed to his left. They all ran in that direction. There was a small hill that was leading to what seemed to be a river.

"How come there's a river down there? Isn't this supposed to be an island?"

Suddenly a cry broke the air.

"Dermott!" Bryn pointed to the sky.

"HELP! HELP! We're hurt! HELP!"

"By Allah, there is more than one person down there," Doubar said. "Let's go, we have to get down there."

Doubar, followed by the rest of the crew, ran down the hill. When they reached the bottom, no one was in sight. Everybody looked around when Rongar pointed to a small dot on the far right of the river. They ran in that direction. Couple of seconds later, they saw what seemed to be a little boy and a little girl. No older than 7 was Sinbad's guess. He picked up more pace. When they reached the little boy, the little girl had disappeared.

"Help us," said the boy who was stuck under a tree trunk.

"How did you get stuck under this?" asked Sinbad while Doubar and Rongar were lifting the tree trunk.

"My sister was hurt so I brought her here but then all of a sudden, I heard a loud CRACK and that tree just fell on me."

"Where is your sister, at the moment?"

"I'm here..."

The voice was faint.

They all looked up to see a little girl standing behind a tree that somehow had survived the massacre. Her skin was badly burned and her eyes, filled with fear, also reflected the pain she was going through. Bryn walked up to her.

"Are you OK?" she asked. "Are you still in pain?"

Tears filled the little girl's eyes. Bryn took her by the hand and lead her down back to the water.

"Let's go in the water. It'll ease your pain."

"- She already did that," the little boy said.

"She should do it again. After a while, it's going to stop hurting."

"Tell me what happened," Sinbad said, turning away from the little girl. "Actually, first, tell me your name."

"I'm Rowan and this is my sister Malika. We're both from the village that burned down because of that fire."

"Are there anymore villages on this island?"

"Just one but the villagers have probably left it already. My dad blew the horn."

"Where is your dad?"

"I don't know. Probably gone. He blew the horn and then took off."

"And he let you all alone with your sister?"

"No. I came back for her. I had noticed that she wasn't with us anymore so I went back to look for her. When I found her, she was lying in the middle of some flames. So I went in, grabbed her then went down this hill and put her in the water. See my hands?"

Sinbad looked down at the boy's hands. They were burned.

"Doesn't it hurt?"

"A bit."

"How old are you, kid?"

"Nine years old. Malika is four."

"You say there isn't any more villagers to be saved?"

"I don't know. If they heard the horn then they probably left this island."

"Well, if there aren't any more villagers on this island, let's get you two on our ship and take care of those injuries. Doubar."

Doubar picked up Rowan and Rongar took little Malika. They all went back to the ship.

Later that night, after their injuries had been taken care of, Sinbad took Malika and Rowan on the deck, Bryn and Doubar watching nearby.

"How did this fire break out?" Sinbad wanted to know.

"Well, I'm not quite sure. We were eating breakfast when Gregor came running into the village yelling something."

"Who's Gregor?"

"The village's fisherman. He was yelling out "Fire! Fire!". My dad went outside and talked to Gregor for a bit before he came back in. When he came in, he said something like: 'Kids, take the essential and leave. Gregor told me that a huge fire is coming this way. We have to evacuate the village.' He didn't tell us more."

Rowan took a small break then went on.

"Malika took her doll and I took her by the hand and we walked out of the house. Several villagers were already running around but nobody seemed to know what on earth they were doing. My dad then called everybody to gather 'round him and Gregor and Gregor told us what he saw."

"What did he see?" Sinbad asked.

"A witch!" let out Malika.

Sinbad turned to her.

"No, not a witch," Rowan said. "He saw someone, he doesn't know who. There was so much wind, he had to keep his eyes closed. He heard someone mutter something and when he opened them, he saw a huge dragon."

"It wasn't a dragon, it was a witch!" Malika said.

"It wasn't a witch, Malika, OK? It was a _dragon_. You know, the beast that coughs up flames. Anyway. (turning back to Sinbad) There was a dragon standing in the water. It started blowing out flames. Gregor got scared and ran away."

"That's what he told you?"

"That's what he told us."

"Then what?"

"Well, we all left. Everybody started running and Dad blew the horn. Then... well... you know the rest."

"Is this the first time something like that has happened?"

"No. Well, actually, we are all from another village on an island not too far from here. We had this trouble with this beast one day and a sailor saved us from it."

"Really?"

"Yes. What was it called? I was fairly young when this happened. I was at least 6 years old. Vorgon... or something like that."

"Yes, the Vorgon. I was the one who destroyed it."

"You're Sinbad!" the boy said as his face lit up with a smile.

"That's me."

"But you don't look like the Sinbad I saw back then. He wasn't wearing those clothes."

"You know, Rowan, sometimes, a man needs new clothes."

Doubar giggled.

"What happened to that girl you were with? The one with the red hair and the hawk?"

"The one you kissed when we came back." Malika added.

Sinbad blushed when he heard Doubar laughing behind him. But soon his embrassment was replaced by sadness..

"She drowned, two and a half years ago."

"Oh. Malika really liked her... and the hawk. Right, Malika?"

"Uh-huh!"

"How did you know Maeve?" Sinbad asked the little girl.

"When we all disappeared, Maeve and me talked and she let me touch her hawk and she told me that she was a sorceress."

"But you must have been only a year old when this happened. How could you have talked to Maeve?"

"Behind that wall, all children became old people. Adults."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I was really tall with long black hair and I was skinny. Malika had become an average height woman with brown hair and brown eyes."

"I see."

Sinbad didn't know what to say. Nobody had talked about where they had gone after the Vorgon had "eaten" them away so he had no way to find out if what Rowan had said was true.

As if he had read his mind, Rowan added:

"But none of the adults remembered anything. When I told my parents about it, they called me a liar."

That night, as Sinbad lay in his bed, he thought about everything that had happened that day. The fire, the kids, the talk he had with them. Although everything seemed like a far-fetched coincidence, it all seemed to fit for some reason. He had this weird feeling but he couldn't quite tell what it was.

A soft knock was heard.

"Come in."

The door opened and Bryn came in. She sat down beside Sinbad.

"What do you think of what Rowan said?" he asked her.

"I don't know. I wasn't there when it happened. I guess anything is possible, captain."

"I just have this weird feeling. Something's not right. The story about the dragon intrigues me, especially that no one else saw or heard anything."

"If you want my opinion, you should talk to Malika."

"Why's that?"

"Something tells me that this girl knows more than her brother thinks. She's still awake, if you want to go see her."

"No. You know what? I'll just wait 'til tomorrow. Everybody is tired, especially the kids. Let's all get some sleep. I'll talk to her first thing tomorrow morning."

"Well, good night." Bryn said as she got up.

"Good night, Bryn." Sinbad said.

When Bryn closed the door, Sinbad closed his eyes and fell immediately asleep.

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**So?**


	2. A Strange Voice in the Night

**A/N: Here is chapter two and hope you all like it. Sorry it's so short.**

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Sinbad awoke, startled, in the middle of the night, feeling like someone had just punched him in the face. Of course, nobody was there but Sinbad looked around his cabin to make sure. No. Nobody. Then what caused him to wake up? His imagination? Suddenly, something caught his attention. A soft sound. A voice. Sinbad sat up in his bed. Who could be up at this time of night?

He got up, took his sword and slowly walked out of his cabin and down the corridor. Everything was silent except for the small cabin emanating from a small cabin on the other side of the kitchen. The visitors' cabins were there and the only visitors on board at the moment were Rowan and Malika. Sinbad crossed the kitchen, still following the sound of the voice.

He stopped in front of the door. Malika's door. He slowly opened it and peeked inside. The little girl was sitting upright on her bed, legs crossed and her hands resting weakly on her knees. She was still talking but to whom? Sinbad pushed the door open a bit more and walked inside. The little girl was alone.

"What should I do then?" Malika asked.

Silence followed. Malika's interlocutor was probably informing her of what she should do. The little girl nodded.

"What about Rowan? He doesn't believe me."

Another silence. Malika smiled and Sinbad felt a chill run up his spine. It had been such a weird smile, a possessed smile. Was Malika in fact possessed?

"Sinbad is okay," she said giggling. "Wanna say hi?"

Malika rapidly turned to face Sinbad and what he saw sent even more chills up his spine. Malika's face was paler than before and her eyes had stopped moving. Sinbad examined her closely. She seemed to be in some sort of trance. He remembered Maeve being in one of those before but she had definetely not looked like this. He didn't know whether it was the moonlight shining in through the small window or just the trance that made Malika look so demonic. Maybe it was a little bit of both.

Their eyes met and Sinbad felt another blow in the face yet, he couldn't look away. Images of Maeve flew before his eyes like a really fast clip of snapshots. He could hear wind in his ears. As suddenly as it started, everything stopped. Malika smiled again, not at Sinbad even though she was looking at him. She seemed to be smiling at whoever it was she talking to.

The room was silent. Malika didn't move nor did she speak. She continued to stare at Sinbad. The little girl was giving him the creeps but for some reason, he found himself incapable of leaving the cabin. Something was holding him there. He was glued to the ground.

"Say hi Sinbad. Don't be shy," Malika then said.

"Say hi to who, Malika?" Sinbad replied, speaking for the first time.

Malika simply laughed.

_Even her laugh gives me the creeps. _He thought.

"To her, of course."

"Who's her?"

"Her."

That's all she seemd to be able to say. There was another minute of silence during which Malika seemed to be listening to _her,_ whoever it was.

"She says not to be afraid." Malika said, in a rather soft voice. "She says that if you looked inside your heart, they will be free."

"Who's they and who's she?"

"Look inside your heart, you'll know."

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

"Just look inside your heart."

Sinbad sighed, exasperated.

"You know Malika, you're a pretty stubborn kid. How do I look inside my heart and what am I supposed to even look for?"

"Do what I say!"

Her tone had been sharp. She was obviously frustrated. Or was it _her_ who was frustrated? This was just too weird.

Sinbad closed his eyes and tried to look inside his heart. Feeling rather stupid, he opened them soon after.

"You're not trying."

"Malika, if you would only tell me what I am supposed to do, it would really help."

Wind picked up in the cabin as Malika stood up on her bed, still looking at Sinbad. Bolts of lightning flashed in her eyes, making the cabin windier and windier.

"You're upsetting her. You're not trying very hard."

Sinbad could barely hear the child through the wind. It was too loud.

"Malika, can't you do anything to stop this thing?" he yelled through the wind.

"Stop what?"

_This girl is definetely crazy._ He thought.

Then, out of nowhere, coming through the wind, he heard it: her.

"Let me talk to him!"

Sinbad's head shot up and and he looked at Malika. The wind ceased blowing and calmness settled back in the cabin. Sinbad felt his throat go dry and his voice cracked as he asked:

"Who said that?"

"I said it."

Malika's mouth had opened but it hadn't been her voice that had came out. Instead, it was a mix of Malika's own voice and some other woman's.

"Sinbad, please look inside your heart. I know you can do it. And once you succeed, we shall be free."

The woman's voice almost sounded desperate.

"Who are you?"

"Look inside your heart, Sinbad. For me. For us." The woman's voice said before fading out.

Malika smiled and sat back down

"I'll tell him it was a witch." She whispered before laying down on her bed.

The spell that had glued Sinbad's feet to the ground vanished. He slowly walked up to Malika and looked at her. She was asleep without a doubt. She looked so peaceful and Sinbad decided to let her sleep. He went back to his cabin.

He stayed awake for the rest of the night, not able to fall asleep. He replayed tonight's event in his head over and over again, trying desperately to make some sense of it. Who had Malika been talking to? Who had talked through her? Why had that person wanted him look inside his heart? How was he even supposed to do that and who was he supposed to be freeing by doing so? All of this was driving him crazy. He knew he would never get the answers he needed unless he talked to Malika about it. Finding finally some kind of peace, he fell asleep a few hours before dawn.

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**Small A/N: Just thought I'd mention that I accept anonymous reviews so feel free to drop me a line or two on what you think of this story so far.**


	3. Her

**A/N: Here is chapter 3. I feel so weird posting this for so few people. Seriously, Sinbad is due for a revival! What do you think?**

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When the sun was finally high enough for him to get out of his cabin, he did so. The small amount of sleep he had gotten had worked wonders on him and he felt rather refreshed. He joined the rest of his crew at breakfast then went up on the deck. 

He relieved the night-shift man of the tiller and bid them a nice rest. He looked at the horizon. It was clear. No land ahead and definetely not a cloud in sight. It was going to be another nice day.

He heard the footsteps in the stairs and knew immediately who it was. Seconds later Malika was emerging from the galley.

" 'Morning, Malika." He said, in a voice he hoped had sounded cheerful. "Did you sleep well?"

"I always sleep well."

_Doesn't surprise me since you're up all night talking to invisible people._ He thought.

"Sweetie, could I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure."

She smiled and he noticed that, when she wasn't in a trance, she could have a really beautiful. He waved a man over and the man took the tiller. Sinbad led Malika on the other side of the ship where they could actually talk privately.

"What are you?" he asked her.

"What do you mean?"

Sinbad cleared his throat. Where to begin?

"Well, last night I went to your cabin because I heard you chatting."

"Oh... right. I do that a lot."

"You do?"

He sounded surprised.

"Who do you talk to?"

"My mom, mostly."

Sinbad looked at her questionningly.

"Isn't your mother dead?"

"Yes. I never knew her."

"Then how can you know that you're speaking to your mother?"

"Because I remember her."

"But you just said you never knew her."

"I didn't. I was two years old when she died. I have no conscient memory of her."

"But..."

Malika giggled.

"It's a bit complicated. Maeve told me all about it when we met. It's actually because of her that I know how to use my powers."

"Your powers? You're a sorceress?"

"Sort of. I have some powers that I have since birth and some others that I could develop should I have the perfect training."

"I see."

"About my mom, when I said I didn't know her, that was the truth. But I remember her. I was quite young when she died but I was old enough to have a very blurry memory of what she looked like. That's how I know."

"I see."

He would ask Bryn to talk to her after. This was too 'scientifical' for him. Maybe she would have an explaination for what this strange little girl was talking about. It just didn't make any sense to him. Maybe it wasn't supposed to.

"So were you talking to your mother last night?"

"No."

"Who were you talking to, then?"

"Maeve."

* * *

"What do you mean she was talking to Maeve?" Doubar asked. 

The kids were asleep for an afternoon nap and the crew had gathered up on deck to listen to Sinbad's surprise announcement. He had been rather secretive as to what he had to tell them and they all understood why now.

"She was talking to Maeve, that's all she told me. It seems that Maeve is able to communicate with this girl and that's who she was talking to when I came in her cabin last night."

"Wait a minute. How is that possible?" Firouz.

"I don't know, my dear friend." Sinbad replied. "I guess this is one of these things that can't be explaine scientifically. It's magic."

Sinbad couldn't stop smiling. Malika had the power to speak to Maeve which meant that there was a slight chance they could bring her back. It meant that she hadn't died, that she was still alive, somewhere in this universe.

"Sinbad." Bryn said. "Didn't Malika also say that she was able to talk to her mother?"

"Yes. And?"

"Well, her mother died, didn't she?"

Bryn didn't need to say more. He understood and the happy feeling immediately vanished. He hadn't thought of that. He had been so happy to learn that Malika could make contact with Maeve that he had forgotten about the fact that she could also talk to her dead mother. Maeve might not be alive after all.

"- I'm sorry Sinbad but I don't think Maeve is still alive." Bryn said, putting her hand on his elbow.

Sinbad sighed.

"If she's dead, why did they both ask me to look inside my heart?" Sinbad asked, suddenly remembering what Maeve and Malika had told him the previous night.

Seeing their puzzled expression, Sinbad went on.

"While Malika was in a trance, she turned around to face me and told me to look inside my heart, only then would I be able to save them. Maeve then told me the same thing."

"Who's them?" Firouz asked.

"Dim-Dim!"

They all looked to look at Doubar.

"What?" Sinbad asked his older brother, confused.

"Remember two years ago when Dim-Dim appeared in the sky and told you that Maeve and him were safe and sound?"

Sinbad felt a hint of hope.

"It's true. I had completely forgotten about it."

"Sinbad, if you can do as you're told, you might be able to bring them back."

"Do as I'm told? And how on earth am I supposed to do that? I'm supposed to look inside my heart, Doubar. It's not like all I have to do is sail to some island and ta-da! there they are. Tell me how exactly am I supposed to look inside my heart?"

"I don't know." Doubar replied, defeated. "I have no clue."

"Yeah well I have all day to think about it. You guys go on doing whatever you have to do. I'll be at the tiller if anyone needs me." Sinbad replied, walking off to the other end of the ship.

* * *

All day, the captain thought about how he could look into his heart. The more he thought about it, the more frustrated he got. Malika was playing nearby, glancing at him every now and then. Even though she was quite young, she had an extraordinary mind and she knew, just by looking at the captain, that he truly wished to free Maeve and Dim-Dim. The first stage was now complete. 

Sinbad knocked softly on the child's door, not wanting to startled her if she was asleep. He heard the faint reply telling him to come in. She wasn't sleeping.

He opened the door and stepped in to find her sitting on her bed, legs crossed, hands resting on her knees just like she had been the previous night. Memories from their last encounter in this cabin flashed in his mind and he felt his stomach contract in anxiety. Had she been getting ready to contact Maeve?

"- Malika?" he risked asking.

The little girl turned around and looked at him.

"- Hi Sinbad!" she said.

Good, she wasn't in a trance.

Sinbad approached the bed and sat down beside her. He didn't know what to say or how to act. It felt awkward to be in the same room as her and felt like he was invading her privacy. He suddenly realized that he didn't feel comfortable around her. Malika must have sensed it because she giggled.

"You don't have to be scared of me. I'm only a child."

She smiled at him and he couldn't help but smile back. She had such a contagious smile.

"Do you want to try again? I know you spent the whole day wondering how you could look into your heart."

"How come you're so smart?" Sinbad asked.

"I told you. I was born with powers, one of them being my mind. Sinbad, in order to look into your heart, you will have to open it."

"Meaning?" he asked, suddenly a bit scared.

"Meaning you will have to let me into your heart. Tell me, how do you feel about Maeve?"

Sinbad looked nervously around the room. He didn't know if she was ready to admit, out loud, what Maeve meant to him.

"I don't see what that's got to do with looking into my heart."

"Just answer my question. How do you feel about her?"

"She's a friend."

"_Just_ a friend?"

"Malika..." He warned.

"You have to be honest with me. Don't worry, I'm not in contact with her."

Sinbad sighed. He was really afraid to admit it; to admit that he liked her more than just a friend, that he wanted her, that he needed her, that he... loved her, even after all this time.

"She's a bit more than just a friend."

"Are you in love with her?"

The question seemed to have come out of nowhere.

"I don't know. Maybe."

"Okay, that's good enough for tonight. Come back tomorrow night. We'll try again."

"What? That's it? Why can't we do more tonight?"

Admitting that he sort of loved Maeve had somehow taken a whole weight of his shoulders and he had been eager to see what the next step was going to be. He simply couldn't believe that Malika was ending this for the night.

"Well, you don't know if you love her or not. You have to be completely sure of what you feel in order to do what you are asked to do."

Sinbad sighed and went back to his cabin.

* * *

_TBC in Chapter 4_


	4. In My Heart

There had been an amazing storm through which the captain didn't think his crew would make it through but they all had. Neverthless, the day had passed very slowly for Sinbad who could only think about one thing: his next night session with Malika. He was more than curious to find out what that amazing little girl had in store for him. She knew how to help him open his heart, she'd help him find Maeve and Dim-Dim. His heart raced at the thought of Maeve. He would be able to see Maeve again, to hold her and maybe even kiss her (if she let him).

The night finally came and Sinbad went back to Malika's cabin. As the previous nights, he found her in the same spot on her bed, in the same position and just like the last night, she turned to him expectantly when he walked in the room. Everything was silent on the ship except for the occasional wave hitting it.

Malika motioned to him to sit down beside him. He did as he was told, his legs suddenly weak.

"Are you ready?" the child asked him.

"I'm ready."

"I really have a feeling we will go a bit further tonight, especially if you did your homework."

Sinbad nodded even though he wasn't quite sure which homework she was talking about.

"Would you sit like me, please?" Malika asked him. "Legs crossed, hands on your knees."

Sinbad did as he was told. It felt weird to be following someone else's orders for once and Sinbad wondered if that was how his crew felt whenever he told them what to do. But what felt even weirder to him was following a child's orders. He tried to imagine how his crew would react if he would suddenly put Malika in charge of the ship. He tried his best not to laugh at the thought.

"Let's start from where we left off last night. I want you to tell me how you feel about Maeve?"

Sinbad took a deep breath. There would be no sort-of's tonight.

"I love her. I love her with all my heart."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

Malika smiled.

"The next step will be a bit harder so you'll really need to concentrate. Have you ever meditated?"

"No." Sinbad admitted almost shamefully.

"Meditation is a great way to relax. My dad used to make me to do it all the time back in the village. You know, when I got too excited. It seems easy but it's not as it seems. You need to close your eyes and try not to think about anything."

Sinbad did as he was told. He closed his eyes and tried to empty his mind. She had been right. It was difficult. Every time he thought he wasn't thinking, he would start thinking again. He sighed in frustration.

"Malika, it's not working."

"I told you it was going to be hard. Try again. Close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Forget that I'm even here."

Minutes passed by and soon turned into an hour. Sinbad tried his best not to get frustrated but this was getting annoying. Finally, he felt his mind go blank. It had finally worked. He felt all of the muscles in his body decontract and he felt like he was barely breathing.

"Now, Sinbad, I want you to concentrate on memories."

Her voice was soft and quiet. She was whispering.

"Try to think of all the things that has happened to the two of you."

As if they had been waiting for ages, memories came pouring through his mind. Just like a very quick clip of snapshots, he saw the first time he met her, the feeling he felt when Dim-Dim ahd told him her wounds were as deep as his, when Vincenzo had turned her into a statue, how he hadfelt when he had first seen her in a dress, the giant goat, Dermott, the Vorgon, the night she fell overboard. All the images flew in his mind. Then he remembered the small things: the way she made him feel when they were together, the stomach-flipping he felt every time he would look into her eyes and even the way her hair flew in the wind.

Malika smiled. She could tell by his expression that it was working. She closed her eyes herself and concentrated on penetrating his thoughts. It was harder than she had expected and had to try several times before she actually succeeded. The third step was now completed. Two more and they would be done. Malika got excited.

_Sinbad, listen to me. Stop reminiscing for a second._

The memory in Sinbad's mind froze.

Pick one memory, the less fuzzy one. Concentrate on really remembering. Remember as much as you can about her. Try to get a clear picture of her in your mind.

Sinbad did as he was told. He decided to take the memory of the first time they met. He remembered how tall she had seemed standing over him, how her red long curly hair was flowing in the wind, her eyes, her lips, her face, her clothes. Everything. But there was something he couldn't quite remember: her beauty.

It suddenly became really windy in the cabin. The spell was starting to work but it still wasn't enough.

_It's not clear enough, Sinbad. You have to remember more than that._

_I can't._

_Yes, you can. I know you can. I did it and I was only three years old at the moment. You're an adult. If I can do it, so can you. Remember HER._

_I'm trying._

_Try harder._

He tried harder but it still wasn't working. He was getting frustrated. He would never be able to remember her beauty. It had been too long since he had seen her. He didn't think he would ever remember how beautiful she truly was.

_Don't get mad or the spell won't work._

Malika took Sinbad's hand in hers.

_Remember HER._

The image hit him like a huge tidal wave. He saw it, what made her beautiful in his eyes. It wasn't her face, it wasn't her hair although her looks did help a lot. It was more who she was. It was her stubborness, her jealousy, the know-it-all attitude she sometimes had, her nurturing nature, her independence, her courage. She was an extraordinary woman and Sinbad had never gotten a chance to really tell her.

Then it happened. Sinbad felt as though he had been lifted off the ground and been thrown into a warphole. He felt himself spinning, so much that he began to feel nauseous. He closed his eyes tightly and tried to ignore the movement.

* * *

It stopped as suddenly as it had started and when Sinbad opened his eyes, he found himself standing in a garden. Where were they? He turned to face Malika, who was standing beside him.

"Welcome to your heart, Sinbad." Malika announced proudly as she looked around.

"What? We're in my heart?"

Sinbad was surprised.

"Yes. This is a special place in your heart where you keep all of the people you care most about, both the living and the dead."

"But Maeve isn't dead, right?" Sinbad asked, suddenly scared.

He wasn't sure he could handle the truth of her being dead, especially after thinking and convincing himself that he could still save her.

"You could say she is but you could say she isn't. It all depends on what you choose to believe."

Sinbad nodded, still a bit unsure.

"If we're in my heart, how come you're here too?"

"You let me in your heart tonight, Sinbad. That's why I'm here with you."

She smiled at her captain.

"Besides, you _would_ need me to come back from here." She added on a amused tone.

Sinbad chuckled.

"What do we do now?"

"Let's go for a walk and see who we might meet."

They walked around for what seemed to be an eternity and Sinbad wondered how big was his heart. When he had asked Malika, she had simply told him that it depended on each person and that since she didn't know him that much, she couldn't tell how big his actually was. Sinbad decided that it all depended on how kind a person truly was and Sinbad felt guilty. His heart had probably shrunken since Maeve had disappeared.

As they walked, Sinbad met up with a lot of people from his past: lost friends, lost family members including his own parents and even lost crew members. Everybody who Sinbad had cared about were here and he was more than happy to see them all again. If only he had known about this place before, he would have came more often. Sinbad noticed that Maeve and Dim-Dim were nowhere to be found. They kept walking. Maybe they'd see them eventually.

The gardens were really beautiful, so full of flowers, trees, butterflies, birds and small animals. The sky was blue and cloudless, the sun was shinning bright. Sinbad breathed in deeply.

"It's so beautiful here." He said.

"It's not always." Malika replied, as her eyes distractidely followed a squirrel running a tree.

"What do you mean?" Sinbad asked, intrigued.

"Whenever you are sad or aching, this place turns very cloudy and rainy. When Maeve did, your heart became very stormy. It rained for months and the place even flooded."

"Who told you?"

"Maeve."

"But you said earlier that she hadn't died."

"Sorry, I didn't choose my words wisely. When Maeve _disappeared,_ this place was very stormy. Dim-Dim also said..."

"You spoke to Dim-Dim?" Sinbad said, cutting her off. _She had spoken to Dim-Dim?_

"Only once." Malika replied, defensively. "He was present with Maeve one night. Nice man. I would really like to meet him."

Finally, they came to a halt in front of a mirror. Water ran through it instead of glass, the sun reflecting on its wave. Sinbad squinted.

Sinbad looked at Malika and smiled at her. He turned around and crossed to the other side.

* * *

He crossed on the other side to find it empty. Nobody was here except for the occasional bird or animal who had gotten lost on their way. He had been about to turn around when a noise caught his attention. Looking around, he spotted someone sitting on a big rock, far away in the distance. He couldn't quite make out who it was though he had a faint idea. His heart started to beat faster as he started walking towards the rock.

As he got closer, the person grew clearer. He immediately recognixed her. He began jogging. As thought the person had been expecting him, it got up. He was so close yet he felt so far away. The person took a few tentative steps and in a second, Sinbad was at her height. He took her hand. It felt warm.

"Hi." Maeve said, softly, her eyes never leaving his.

"Hi." He replied as softly, not letting go of her hand.

"It took you a long time to look into your heart." She said, grinning. "Was it because you hadn't know where you had last left it? Like say, perhard, on one of those girls' nighstands?"

"What girls?" Sinbad asked, letting go of her hand but knowing fully well what girls she was talking about.

"The ones you've been sleeping with over the last few years."

"Oh Maeve, come on. It was all in the line of duty."

"Sure it was."

"What? It was."

"Uh-huh?"

Sinbad only smiled. He was too happy to carry on that argument.

"I'm so happy to see you."

"The feeling is mutual."

They looked at each other for a while.

"Come on. Malika is waiting for us." Maeve said, taking a hold of Sinbad's hand.

* * *

The couple walked back to the other side of the mirror to find Malika still waiting for them, laying on her back and looking at the sky. Her eyes fell on them the second they appeared at her side and she stood up. Malika led them back to the spot where she and Sinbad had landed.

As they walked, Sinbad casted glances at Maeve. He couldn't believe that she was actually standing beside him. He had missed her so much and now she was with him, her hand in his, as they walked in silence.

Sensing his gaze, Maeve turned her head. Their eyes locked and they both smiled.

Malika stopped in her tracks, followed by Sinbad and Maeve. The three of them turned to face one another.

"This is the final step, Sinbad. It's the easiest yet the hardest one of all. You got to let go of Maeve."

Sinbad tried his best not to chuckle. Malika was right for one thing: this was going to be the easiest one of all. His optimistic look on the situation changed but when Sinbad tried to let go of Maeve's hand but was unable to succeed. It felt like their hand had been glued together.

"I can't let go." Sinbad said, puzzled.

Malika giggled.

"Of coutse you can't let go. You got to want to let go."

"What?" Sinbad asked, surprised. "How can I do that?"

"Just try."

He tried again, unsuccessfully.

"I can't."

"Sinbad." Maeve said, desperately. "It's the only way you can save us. Let go of me... please."

She looked into his eyes.

"You got to let me go."

Her tone was sharp. He'd have to listen to her. His heart ached.

"I love you, Maeve."

He felt her stiffen a little.

"I know you do." Maeve replied, knowingly.

Sinbad tried to free his hand. It work. He closed his eyes. He couldn't bare to look at her again. He felt like his heart had been torn from him, thrown on the ground and stepped on. He felt the wind raise and he knew it was going rain. He wanted to leave this place and never come back. He wanted to...

"Sinbad!"

Sinbad opened his eyes. He was back in his cabin.

* * *

**See you in Chapter 5.**


	5. The Island of Memories

**A/N: I was going to post this tomorrow but I was too excited after working on that chapter to wait longer. So here is a long chapter to make up for the short one coming next. The story is almost over for those who are interested, I'll be postingthe sequel very soon. Thank you for reading and hope you enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

"Where am I?" Sinbad asked as he rubbed his eyes.

His head thumped but he didn't know why. He hadn't hit anywhere.

"You're in your cabin." Doubar replied.

Sinbad noticed that his brother wore a worried expression on his features.

"What happened?"

"We don't know. We found you laying in the hallway. Good thing Bryn happened to walk by because you would have spent the night in the hallway."

"What? How's that possible? I couldn't have been in the hallway, I was with Malika. We were in her cabin. We were..." Sinbad furrowed his brows. "meditating."

He rubbed his eyes once again. Everything was fuzzy and all he wanted was to go back to sleep.

"Malika is sound asleep and has been for the past six hours." Bryn replied, obviously concerned for her captain.

"What time is it?"

"The sun won't be up for another two or three hours."

Sinbad yawned.

"Could I be left alone, please?" he asked his crew.

His friends nodded.

"Of course." Doubar replied.

Bryn, Firouz, Rongar and Doubar left the cabin, leaving Sinbad alone with his thoughts just as he had asked.

What had happened? Why had he been found in the hallway when he had been with Malika? Had he dreamed all of what had happened in his heart? He secretly hoped not.

"Whatever it is," he thought, "will have to wait until morning. I'm exhausted."

He fell asleep a couple of seconds after finishing his thought.

* * *

The sun finally rose but when Sinbad awoke, it was already way up in the sky but hidden behind thick bad clouds. The captain opened his eyes to find his cabin drowned in darkness. He mumbled something before turning on his side. He didn't want to wake up, he was feeling really depressed and devoid of energy. But, after all, he _was _the captain and he _needed_ to get up.

Sitting up slowly in his bed, he stretched his arms and yawned once again. As slowly, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and slid his feet in his boots. Getting up, he decided to skip breakfast. He wasn't hungry anyway.

On deck, small raindrops were starting to fall. Sinbad looked up at the sky and sighed. He felt empty, like a part of him had been taken away from him. Looking at the sky, he wondered if the weather of his heart ressembled what he was looking at.

Malika came up on deck shortly after him, Rowan behind her. They both went to the other side of the ship to play. Seconds laer, the rest of the crew followed. While the others scattered across the deck, Doubar decided to talk to his little brother.

"You seem tired little brother. What's up?" Doubar asked.

"Nothing."

"It doesn't seem like nothing."

Sinbad sighed.

"I just... I just feel like something in my heart is missing."

The captain stopped and stared at the sea ahead for a couple of seconds.

"You said you found me laying on the floor last night?"

"Yes, we did. You gave us quite a fright. We thought you had been attacked or something. Why do you ask?"

"I know you don't believe me, big brother, but I have no clue how I got in the hallway. I was with Malika. We were meditating in her cabin. She helped me open my heart and we went to this place where I saw Maeve. I had to let her go. She said it was the only way I could free her. I told her I loved her and she said she knew I did. Next thing I know, Bryn is calling out my name and I'm waking up in my cabin."

Doubar listened silently at his brother's tale not quite sure what to believe. None of this was making any sense to him and he didn't know exactly what to tell his brother. Secretly, he believed that Sinbad had simply dream this and, in his sleep, had somehow walked out of his cabin and collapsed on the floor in the hallway. Unfortunately, another part of him desperately wanted to believe what his brother was telling him, partially because he seemed to believe so much that all of that had happened.

"Are you sure you just didn't dream all of that?"

"I'm positive. I saw her, I touched her, I felt her. She was real. Everything about her was real."

Doubar shrugged.

"Well I don't know what else to say. Ask Bryn to go through her magic books. Maybe she'll find something in there."

Sinbad handed him the tiller and did as he was told. After filling Bryn in on the details, the pair went below deck and in her cabin. All morning, they searched through Maeve's old magic books but found nothing. Nothing in the books about a spell that ressembled closely the one Malika had used on him.

"Maybe it's black magic." Bryn said, thoughtfully, after closing the last book.

Sinbad's heart skipped a beat. Could it be? The person, the muttering, the dragon, the fire, Malika's eyes... Rumina?

"No, it's impossible. Malika doesn't practice black magic."

"And since when are you the expert in magic?"

"I'm not." The captain admitted. "But I've seen my share of black magic in the past years to know what it looks like. Malika's white magic all the way. She did mention something about a witch and not a dragon. The fire could have been black magic but why?"

"Do you know anybody who does black magic?"

"Rumina."

"Who?" Bryn asked, confused.

"Rumina. She's a black magic sorceress Maeve and I fought while she was part of my crew. Maeve wanted to kill her more than she wanted anything else in the entire world. I'm not sure why exactly, she never told me."

Bryn opened her mouth to talk but reconsidered.

"What could Rumina want now?" Bryn decided to say. "I mean, why burn down that particular island?"

"Maybe she knew Malika was communicating with Maeve. Rumina has her ways of finding out stuff on her own. But it doesn't really matter right now. All I want at the moment is to find Maeve and Dim-Dim. The rest isn't important. It can wait."

* * *

"Land ahead!"

It had been a week since Sinbad had came back from his trip in his heart and he still felt like something was missing from it. He hadn't talked to Malika liked he had planned to, too busy trying to keep his ship from sinking in the ravageous storm that had lasted three straight days. He had her talk to Maeve several times during the week and, the more he listened, the more his heart hurt. He really wanted Maeve to come back but he didn't know how. Maeve had said that if he opened his heart and let her go, they would be free but a week had passed and nothing, absolutely nothing, had happened.

The voice of his crewmember brought him back to reality.

"What do you mean land ahead? I don't see anything." He yelled back.

"It's still pretty far." The man replied. "Only a tiny dot. Maybe Firouz would see something."

"Firouz! Can you see any land?"

Firouz, who had been examining the west side of the ship through his magnoscope, turned the lens to the north.

"Yes, I do. And there's something... weird about it."

Sinbad sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Not again. What's wrong with this island _now_?"

Firouz turned to his captain. Sinbad noted that the scientist looked slightly uncomfortable.

"Looks like someone is throwing fire balls or something."

"Fire balls?"

Fire balls: Maeve's specialty.

Sinbad let go of the tiller and ran to Firouz. Snatching the magnoscope from his friend's hands, he then looked into it. He could see the island clearly and just like Firouz had observed, fire balls were in fact being thrown in the air. Sinbad felt his stomach contract.

"Bryn! Do that wind spell again!"

"Aye aye Captain!"

Seconds later, the wind blew stronger. The ship sailed faster and faster that it started to tip. Running back to the tiller, Sinbad tried to control his ship. Waves hit the deck and splashed on the crew holding on to ropes for dear life.

"Counter-curse it, Bryn! We're almost at land." Sinbad barked through the wind.

Bryn did as she was told. The wind stopped as immediately as it had started and so did the fire balls. Sinbad ordered the longboats to be taken out.

"Where are you going?" Rowan asked, coming out from below deck.

"On this island. You two stay on the ship. It might be dangerous."

"At least take _me._" Malika said.

Sinbad had been about to agree but was cut off by Rowan.

"Why should they take you? Should they take anyone, it should be me. I'm older."

"I'm a witch!" Malika bit back.

"No you're not!"

"Yes I am!"

"No you're not."

"Yes I am!"

"No you're NOT!"

"YES I AM!"

"Okay that's enough you two." Sinbad said. "You can both come. Malika, you stay with me. I might... need you."

"You sure will," Malika said, looking back at her brother in a triumphant way as she got in the longboat.

The rest of the crew followed.

* * *

The island seemed deserted as they set foot on it.

"Curious..." Firouz said, puzzled. "I was sure someone was on this island."

A cry was heard from above. They all looked up to see Dermott flying straight for the forest ahead of them. Malika's voice made them look back down.

"There are people on this island but unfortunately, the only person who will be able to see them is Sinbad. That's if he is able to look into his heart once more."

Sinbad shifted uncomfortably.

"Malika, I didn't want to tell you but I don't think this place in my heart is still there. For the past week, I felt like something was missing."

"Yes!"

Malika seemed happy.

"Why are you so happy?" Bryn asked the little girl, disapprovingly. "It's actually pretty sad that Sinbad feels that way."

"If Sinbad feels that way, it means that the spell worked and that Dim-Dim and Maeve are saved. You even saw her fire balls. Only people who truly cared about her would be able to see them. It's part of the charm of this island."

Sinbadwas surprised by the child's revelation.

"Tell me more about this island, Malika, as you seem to know a lot about it."

"This island, Sinbad, is called the Island of Memories. Every person has one, they just need the proper guidance to find it. When you let go of Maeve in the garden, it was because you had made the decision to let her go. By doing that, you were deciding to give up you long-time wish to ever see her again. You accepted the fate that you might not ever see her again. That's the key to this spell. Only you could make it work, even though you need a sorceress to help you."

The captain felt like his breath had been knocked out of him. This wasn't making any sense to him. He was pretty sure Malika had left out some valuable information.

"Then what?"

"It's simple. You know how when you lose something and that you start looking you rarely find it?"

"Yeah...?"

He wasn't quite sure where she was going with this.

"Well it's always after you stop looking that you find whatever it was you were looking for. Consciously or unconsciously, you have been searched for Maeve and Dim-Dim for years and it was only by stopping looking for them that you would find them."

He wasn't sure he understood what she was saying. He turned to his crew who also wore the same confused expression on their face.

"But where were they?"

"In your heart, Sinbad. They were in your heart all along. Once you make the trip to your heart and come back from it, that special place disappears and transforms into an island. The island only appears when the person has completely stopped looking for the person they hold so dear. You stopped looking for Maeve some time ago and Destiny made sure you would find me. That way, I would be able to help you find your lost friend."

"What about the dragon?" Rowan asked, amazed at what his sister was revealing.

"That was Destiny... and Rumina."

"Rumina?" Sinbad asked, surprised.

"Yes, Rumina. She came to our island because she knew that I was able to communicate with Maeve and she came to get me. She's the one who burned our island but then again she could burn down every single island on this world, she would never find me."

"And why is that?" Firouz asked.

"Simple. She's looking for an adult and I'm only a child."

"How's that possible?" Bryn asked.

"In her oracle, I was an adult, the same adult I had been while being stuck in mid-air by the Vorgon. That's who she sees communicating with Maeve every night. Even if she came to the island where I live, even if she would have been looking straight at me talking to Maeve, she would have only seen a child. Even if I would have been in the same position or even in the same spot. Dim-Dim made that spell to protect me from her. In her eyes, I'm an adult."

Malika stopped talking and she watched as the crew exchanged puzzled looks. She giggled softly.

"So what do we do now?" Sinbad asked, excited that his search might be coming to an end.

"Let me handle it." The little girl replied.

She sat down in the sand, legs crossed, hands on her knees. She looked at Sinbad who knew the drill. He did the same.

"Don't move. Don't close your eyes, just wait for the signal. Then we'll start meditating."

Then, turning to the crew:

"Not one sound out of you." She warned.

The crew looked at each other.

Malika closed her eyes and murmured something. Sinbad looked up at his friends. They all looked puzzled. Sinbad smiled.

The girl continued to mumble her incantation when, all of a sudden, Sinbad felt something hit him in the chest. A wave of energy and happiness flew into his veins. The missing piece, it had come back.

_Sinbad start meditating._ He heard in his mind.

The captain closed his eyes and focused on his breathing. He was getting better and better at it and inside five minutes, Malika put her hand on his. He knew what it meant. The contact had been made.

"_Where are we?" _He asked.

"_We're in Dermott's body. Look, he's flying over the forest right now. He's going to tell us when he finds them."_

"_How?"_

"_You'll see."_

They watched as Dermott flew above the vast forest. Minutes later, they both heard a cry. The bird had found something. They watched as he zoomed quickly towards what seemed like a house. Dermott perched himself on the window frame and looked inside. Sinbad could see a kitchen with empty plates still on the table.

"_Go to another window, Dermott."_ Malika told the hawk.

Dermott flew to a window on the second floor. Sinbad recognized the room as a bedroom. Clothes, familiar clothes, were laying on the bed but otherwise the room was empty.

"_Derm, hit the window with you beak."_

Dermott did and seconds later, a man entered the room. Sinbad could hardly believe it. Dim-Dim, it was Dim-Dim.

"_Sinbad, we found them! Now focus on this image you are seeing of Dim-Dim."_

"_Okay."_

Sinbad looked at Dim-Dim in the eyes. It felt weird. All of a sudden, he heard four voices in his head.

"_Mahaka rah ij tchi hema!"_

The voices sounded familiar. He was pretty sure he recognized one of them as being Dim-Dim's but the man's lips weren't moving. Maybe he had other ways of doing incantations.

"_It's not working." _Malika said. _"Sinbad, focus. Look at Dim-Dim. Forget anything else, just look at him."_

The same voices repeated the incantation. Sinbad didn't know what actually supposed to be happening but what was going on was certainly not it. The image was becoming darker and darker. Dim-Dim, along with the room and the house, was fading away. Sinbad felt himself on the verge of blacking out. Something was wrong.

"_Sinbad!"_

Malika's voice sounded desperate.

"_Concentrate. You are losing us."_

"_What do you mean I'm losing you?"_

"_If this doesn't work, Dermott, Maeve, Dim-Dim and I are going to die. Please, you need to concentrate."_

Suddenly, the fourth voice started making sense to him. Rumina. It was Rumina's voice. Somehow she had found out about the spell.

"_It's her, isn't it? It's Rumina. She's fighting it, isn't she?"_

"_Yes and please, we're begging you. Do not let her. Sinbad, it's us against her. We can fight her. Together, we can win. All you need to do is concentrate. Please, we are begging you."_

Malika's voice was pleading. Sinbad tried his best to concentrate on only what he saw. It seemed to work. The image grew clearer and clearer. He could see the room, the bed, the clothes. He tried his best to keep his gaze on Dim-Dim but he was getting distracted. A mirror came into view.

"_Okay Sinbad, this is our last chance. This is draining a lot of energy from me."_

He focused even more. The voices tried the incantation once more.

"_Mahaka rah ij tchi hema! MAHAKA RAH IJ TCHI HEMA!"_

"_It's working!"_ Malika announced triumphantly as everything around them started spinning. _"Keep your eyes closed Sinbad, if you don't want to be sick. This may take a while."_

Sinbad sensed that Malika was truly happy from the tone of her voice.

Just as the child had predicted, the spinning lasted a long time but finally everything stopped. Sinbad and Malika opened their eyes. Sinbad noticed that they were still sitting on the beach, in the warm sand, his crew watching them curiously.

"So? Did it work?" Sinbad asked his friends as he got up and dusted the sand from his pants.

They all shrugged.

"There's only one way to find out." Malika said, pointing at the clearing that had appeared at the entrance of the forest.

They all turned around expectantly and looked at the clearing. Seconds later, Dim-Dim and Maeve were materializing in front of their eyes.

* * *

**See in you the last chapter!**


	6. Back At Home

**A/N: Sorry it took such a long time to update. I usually don't take that much time and I have no clue why it happened that way this time. Anyway hope you enjoy the last chapter.**

* * *

Cries of joy echoed through the island as the crew ran up to Dim-Dim and Maeve. Hugs were exchanged and happiness was definetely in the air.

Sinbad couldn't believe it. He couldn't quite believe that this was real and he was pretty sure he would wake up in a few minutes, in his cabin, and realize that this was all a dream. But when Sinbad wrapped his arms tightly around his love, he knew that this was real. Just like the trip to his heart had been. He wasn't going to wake up and _that_ made him happy. After all these years...

They hugged for a long time, silently, simply enjoying each other's company. Maeve was surprised at herself. She had never been so open. Right now, she couldn't care less. And she knew that her friends wouldn't care either. It had been so long.

"I missed you so much." Sinbad finally said, forgetting that he was circled by his friends. "Don't ever and I mean _ever_ leave me again."

Maeve pulled back.

"Only if you promise me one thing." She replied, a mischiveous grin on her face.

"What's that?"

"Change your clothes for God's sake! What on earth are they anyway?"

Sinbad heard everybody around him laugh. He merely smiled at his friend.

"Kiss her already!" Doubar said behind him.

Sinbad turned to look at his brother. He could tell by his brother's large grin that he was happy. Sinbad chuckled lightly. It was really nice to see his brother like that. He turned his attention back to Maeve.

"Seems like we have no options." He said in a teasing tone.

Maeve giggled.

"I guess not."

They both leaned in simultaneously for their first kiss in two and a half years. The second their lips met, Maeve's arms immediately snaked around Sinbad's neck and Sinbad pulled her even closer. They kissed for what seemed to their friends as a long time during which Rowan and a very tired Malika walked up to them.

"Eeeeeewwwww." Rowan said, disgusted.

Breaking their kiss, Maeve and Sinbad looked down at the children. Sinbad pulled Malika closer to him.

"Let's all go back to the ship." Doubar said.

Letting go of Maeve, Sinbad crouched down in front of Malika.

"Thank you." He whispered to her.

Malika simply smiled.

* * *

The reunion party lasted until very late in the night. Malika tried her best to stay awake but a few hours after the sun had set, Maeve was tucking the little girl in her bed. 

"Thank you so much for your help." Maeve told her, bending down to kiss the child on the forehead.

"You're welcome." Malika replied, stifling a yawn.

Maeve smiled lovingly.

"One day, you'll make a fine sorceress."

"Maybe you could teach me. I want to be just like when I grow up so we can both go destroy Rumina."

Maeve's smile turned sad and she sighed softly. She could tell that Malika, even if she had never met her, missed her mother dearly. Unlike Dermott, Sarah hadn't been turned into a hawk. She had been killed.

"I'm sorry she had to kill your mother, Honey."

"And I'm sorry she had to turn Dermott into a hawk. But one day, we will defeat her... or die trying."

Maeve chuckled. She wondered where children took their optimism. They always thought that everything would turn out okay. They didn't know when or know how, but they simply _knew._

"You sound just like Sinbad."

Malika smiled before yawning.

"Get some sleep." Maeve told her. "The spell drained the energy out of you."

Malika nodded.

"Good night, Maeve."

"Good night, Malika." Maeve replied before getting up and walking back to the door. And just as Maeve closed the door behind her, Malika fell into a deep slumber.

* * *

On deck, Sinbad stood staring at the stars. He still couldn't believe that Maeve was back. He was still afraid that he would wake up in a few moments, in his cabin, and realize that everything that had occured in the last hours had been simply a figment of his imagination. 

He heard the footsteps in the stairs and knew instantly who it was. But he didn't turn around. He didn't need to. Seconds later, he felt someone kiss the back of his neck. He shivered.

"What were you thinking about?" the newcomer asked him.

He turned to face the redhead.

"I was considering retiring from the sea."

Maeve's eyes grew wide in surprise.

"What? No! You'll never be able to do that. You love the sea."

Sinbad shrugged.

"It's worth the try. It's just that with everything that has happened in the last few years and today, I just feel like it's time for me to settle down."

They locked eyes and Maeve noticed that, for the first time since she had met him, Sinbad looked scared and vulnerable.

"But only if you want the same thing too."

Maeve smiled, shyly.

"Well it would be a lot less complicated considering I will soon have a sorceress' apprentice."

"Malika?"

"Yes. She wants me to teach her some magic."

"Well she has the mind for it, no doubt. That child is very smart."

Maeve nodded.

"So what do you say? We could settle down back in Baghdad and maybe, I don't know... get married and start a family of our own?"

Maeve felt her face grow warm and she hoped that she wasn't blushing. Marry Sinbad? Yes, she could picture herself with him. She always had but she never truly admit it to herself.

"Are you proposing?" she asked, stalling for time.

She wasn't quite sure how to reply yet. She needed a few seconds.

"Yeah, I guess I am. So? What do you say?"

Maeve smiled.

"Of course I'll marry you."

Sinbad smiled and kissed her.

"Then it's settled."

"Yes but let's not go to Baghdad."

"Well, where else do you wanna go?"

* * *

"It's perfect." 

"It is, isn't it?" Maeve said as she looked around. "I've always loved this place. Remember? This is the same place where you found Dim-Dim after I brought you to him."

Sinbad slid his hand in hers.

"I remember. And I didn't want to have to do anything with you."

Maeve turned to her captain.

"You despised me, didn't you?"

"Just like I despised all women. But I grew really fond of you." Sinbad replied, giving her hand a small squeeze.

"You know, I think I understand why Dim-Dim said we were so much alike. We are."

And, at the risk of sounding dumb, Sinbad replied:

"We are more than alike, Maeve. We're soul mates."

Sinbad looked at Maeve and smiled. They looked at each other in the eyes. Yes, they were soul mates.

THE END

* * *

**Well there it is. The last chapter. Coming soon: the sequel.**


End file.
